MANILA -- The noontime program "It's Showtime" on Thursday announced its new segment, a contest for "good-looking gay men," following its popular talent showcase for lesbians.

A teaser for the upcoming contest, titled "I Am Pogay," was shown after the hosts announced the winners of the day's edition of "That's My Tomboy."

The 30-second clip shows a silhouette of a muscular man putting on a polo shirt and a suit, who then places a rose on his ear after initially holding it with his mouth.

Moments after the teaser was aired, "POGAY" and "#IAmPogay" made it to the nationwide trending topics on micro-blogging site Twitter, with the latter ranking first.

While the short video did not give details about the new segment, co-hosts Anne Curtis and Vice Ganda confirmed on Twitter that "I Am Pogay" is a contest for "handsome gay men."

It is not clear whether it will also feature a talent showcase for contestants, as in "That's My Tomboy."

Launched in October last year and held daily on "It's Showtime," the segment for lesbians who look masculine also includes a question-and-answer portion.

Aside from the two contests that cater to the LGBT community, "It's Showtime" recently scored hits with segments like "Stars on 45," a singing contest for those aged 45 and above; and "Kalokalike," a competition among impersonators of celebrities.

Hmmm, di kaya "I am Pogay!" because it's a declaration of sorts ng mga magiging contestants? Take note, these are straight-acting gays na possible na di pa totally "out". (Pwedeng they're "out" sa mga family members and friends nila, pero the rest of the universe may see them as straights. After all, we (I mean in a typical Filipino context) tend to associate "gayness" with being effeminate.) By joining this contest, they bravely come up there on stage and declare that yes they're into guys but here they are they look like guys themselves. It's like giving being gay a new face.

I like it; this is a brave concept. As I've said though, this will be a controversial segment. People will be talking.

Hmmm, di kaya "I am Pogay!" because it's a declaration of sorts ng mga magiging contestants? Take note, these are straight-acting gays na possible na di pa totally "out". (Pwedeng they're "out" sa mga family members and friends nila, pero the rest of the universe may see them as straights. After all, we (I mean in a typical Filipino context) tend to associate "gayness" with being effeminate.) By joining this contest, they bravely come up there on stage and declare that yes they're into guys but here they are they look like guys themselves. It's like giving being gay a new face.

I like it; this is a brave concept. As I've said though, this will be a controversial segment. People will be talking.

MANILA -- The new "It's Showtime" segment for gay men was an instant hit among the studio audience and netizens who were tuned in to the noontime program on Saturday, when the contest was launched with two hopefuls taking the stage.

Joining as the first candidates of "I Am Pogay," billed as a contest for "handsome gay men," were 29-year-old Erimar Ortigas and 23-year-old Dennishon Bryan Reyes-Javier.

In a move that surprised the "It's Showtime" hosts, including openly gay comedian Vice Ganda, Javier used the program to reveal his sexual orientation to his parents for the first time during the introduction portion.

Aside from this round, where contestants get to share a pick-up line, "I Am Pogay" hopefuls also perform a talent of their choice, and are subsequently asked to relate a mystery object to life in the question-and-answer portion.

Similar to other contests on "It's Showtime," the audience get to rate the candidates, this time with placards saying "Confirmed" to signify approval, or "Confused" for otherwise.

Sitting in as judges on Saturday were "It's Showtime" co-hosts Jhong Hilario and Karylle, along with celebrity stylist Liz Uy, who all rated both Ortigas and Javier "Confirmed" resulting in a tie. Both took home P20,000.

No. 1 topic on Twitter

During the contest, co-host Billy Crawford announced that "I Am Pogay" was already a trending topic on micro-blogging site Twitter.

At one point, "#IAmPogay" topped the worldwide trends on the site, with "POGAY" and "Liz Uy" ranking fifth and seventh in the same list, respectively.

"I Am Pogay" is the second LGBT-themed segment of "It's Showtime" after the highly successful "That's My Tomboy." Launched in October last year with its grand finals nearing, the talent showcase for lesbians who look masculine also includes a question-and-answer portion.

Aside from the two contests, "It's Showtime" recently scored hits with segments like "Stars on 45," a singing contest for those aged 45 and above; and "Kalokalike," a competition among impersonators of celebrities.